ASC – Sports

THE AMERICAN SOUTHWEST CONFERENCE MEN’S SOCCER PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Games: August 31-September 3, 2018

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Jovi Munoz, F, Fr., UT Dallas
UT Dallas freshman forward Jovi Munoz (Arlington, Texas) accounted for all four of the Comets’ goals over the weekend as he lifted UTD to a pair of wins in Colorado Springs. Munoz recorded a hat trick in Friday’s 3-2, double-overtime win at Colorado College, then added a late tally Sunday as the Comets edged Whitman 1-0.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Travis Aday, GK, Sr, Mary Hardin-Baylor
Mary Hardin-Baylor senior goalkeeper Travis Aday (Lawton, Okla.) made his debut for the Cru and recorded four saves, 0.47 goals against average and a shutout while picking up a pair of wins in 192 minutes of action. He allowed one goal against Puget Sound in a 2-1 double-overtime win, then held Dallas scoreless on Sunday.

OTHER TOP PERFORMANCES
Offensive
East Texas Baptist freshman forward Rafael Mijares (Jasper, Texas) hit the game-winning shot in the 81st minute after a deflection to give the Tigers a 2-1 victory over Schreiner on Saturday.

LeTourneau freshman Luis De La Torre (San Antonio, Texas) scored the game-winning goal in the YellowJackets’ season-opening 3-1 win over Schreiner. He also assisted the game-tying goal 10 minutes earlier in the contest.

Mary Hardin-Baylor junior midfielder Martin Lopez (Hutto, Texas) had a hand in both of the Cru’s game-winning goals, assisting Jack Coad in the Cru’s 2-1 double-overtime win over Puget Sound and netting the winner in their 1-0 win over Dallas.

Louisiana College freshman forward Gabriel G. Lopes (Sao Paulo, Brazil) provided a pair of beautiful strikes as the Wildcats split to open the season. His first was the game-winner in the first half against Jarvis Christian, followed by a goal early in the game in a loss to Texas College.

Concordia Texas senior forward Omar Aguirre (Austin, Texas) scored two goals on the weekend. He scored the equalizing goal in the final 10 minutes of the game against Texas Lutheran which led to a 2-1 win over the Bulldogs on Friday night. On Sunday, Aguirre scored in the 85th minute at St. Thomas (Texas) which forced the game to overtime.

Sul Ross State freshman forward Luis Gonzalez (El Paso, Texas) tallied eight shots with four on goal and netted a pair of goals with an assist in the Lobos’ first two collegiate games over the weekend.

Ozarks senior forward Bryce Young (Plano, Texas) scored his 25th career goal in an overtime loss against Birmingham-Southern.

Defensive
UT Dallas sophomore goalkeeper John Nicknish (Spring, Texas) matched a career high with five saves Sunday as the Comets held off Whitman 1-0 in Colorado Springs. He made four of his saves in the seconds half. Nicknish also had two saves Friday in the UTD’s 3-2 double-overtime win at Colorado College. For the week, he had 0.91 goals against average, and a 77.8 save percentage with a shutout.

LeTourneau freshman defender David Egbe (Palestine, Texas) provided defensive stops for the YellowJackets in a 3-1 season-opening win over Schreiner. He helped hold the Mountaineers to only two shots, one corner kick and a goal in the game.

Concordia Texas senior defender Nash Cole (Sugar Land, Texas) scored the game-winning goal on a penalty kick in the Tornados’ 2-1 win over Texas Lutheran. He also limited their opponents to three goals over the weekend while playing the back line.

 

THE AMERICAN SOUTHWEST CONFERENCE FOOTBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

 

Games: August 30-September 1, 2018

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Kalon Heim, RB, So., Southwestern
Southwestern sophomore running back Kalon Heim (Alvarado, Texas) recorded seven touches for a total of 150 yards and three touchdowns in the Pirates’ 42-21 win over Denison to start the season. Heim posted six carries for 80 yards and two TDs and had a 70-yard touchdown catch.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Hayden Smith, LB, Jr., Southwestern
Southwestern junior linebacker Hayden Smith (Katy, Texas) finished with 11 tackles and a pair of sacks for 12 yards of loss in the Pirates’ 42-21 victory against Denison. As the Big Red attempted to get back into the game, Smith’s two sacks came on huge third downs in Southwestern territory to stall Denison’s drive.

SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Dominic Haggerty, KR, Sr., East Texas Baptist
East Texas Baptist senior kick returner Dominic Haggerty (Shreveport, La.) tied the Tiger record with a 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown with 2:17 left in the second quarter. The performance gave ETBU a 37-17 lead against No. 16 UW-Platteville and was his second career kickoff return. Haggerty posted two kick returns for 121 yards in the loss to the Pioneers.

OTHER TOP PERFORMANCES
Offensive
East Texas Baptist senior wide receiver Richard Johnson (Cleveland, Texas) had six catches for 92 yards and two touchdowns in the Tigers’ 59-44 loss to No. 16 UW-Platteville. His first touchdown was for 20-yards to give ETBU a 14-3 lead, followed by a 23-yard score in the third to put the Tigers up 44-38.

Belhaven junior wide receiver Joey Walden (Oxford, Miss.) led the Blazers with three catches for 49 yards, including a 25-yarder in their 18-3 loss to Millsaps.

Defensive
East Texas Baptist senior defensive back Zack Biles (New Caney, Texas) led the Tigers with 13 tackles in the loss to No. 16 UW-Platteville. He also recorded a 25-yard interception at the one-yard line with 9:31 left in half to stop the Pioneers from scoring.

Belhaven junior linebacker David Lewis (Marrero, La.) led the Blazers with 11 tackles, including eight solos, two tackles for a loss of 11 yards, one sack and a forced fumble in an 18-3 loss to Millsaps. His efforts helped hold the Majors scoreless in the second half.

Special Teams
Southwestern junior kicker Luke Fierst (Kerrville, Texas) was perfect 6-of-6 on extra points in the Pirates’ 42-21 victory against Denison.

Sul Ross State freshman kicker Julio Azua (El Paso, Texas) was perfect on the night, hitting a pair of extra points and two field goals in the Lobos’ 42-20 loss at Arizona Christian. Azua hit a 28-yard field goal early in the second quarter and converted a 30-yarder in the third.

Belhaven senior punter Zach Shemmel (Clinton, Miss.) punted the ball nine times for an average of 36.2 yards and a long of 51 yards in the Blazers’ 18-3 loss to Millsaps. Shemmel had one punt land inside the 20.